Clock Frequencies

The following chart shows how well the processor sustains its clock frequency, and which boost clock speeds are achieved at various thread counts. This test uses a custom-coded application that mimics real-life performance—it is not a stress test like Prime95. Modern processors change their clocking behavior depending on the type of load, which is why we provide three plots with classic floating point math, SSE SIMD code, and the modern AVX vector instructions. Each of the three test runs calculates the same result using the same algorithm, just with a different CPU instruction set.

Overclocking

Just like the Core i9-10900K, the Core i9-10850K has an unlocked multiplier, which simplifies overclocking greatly. You are basically free to set whichever frequency you desire, and that's it. Of course, you have to disable all the various limits in the processor for the overclock to actually activate.

My highest all-core maximum stable overclock using an air cooler was 5.1 GHz, with 1.323 V, which matches my Core i9-10900K almost exactly (5.1 GHz @ 1.332 V). The limiting factor here is voltage, which is required to get the CPU stable at higher frequencies, but increases temperature. With air cooling, you'll quickly run into the processor's thermal limit, and it will start throttling to protect itself, which prevents higher frequencies.

Using a 240 mm AIO, I was able to get 5.2 GHz stable with a lot more voltage, which caused CPU temperatures to exceed 95°C, putting them right at the throttling point despite watercooling. Definitely not worth it.